Monday, November 24, 2008

Fun times with Family

Two weeks ago, I went to New Jersey with the kids to help my parents get their house ready to sell as they will be moving to DC. We went through boxes upon boxes, took trips to the thrift shop, and threw a lot of stuff out. We got a lot done that week and my mom's been working hard everyday to get it staged perfectly for showings. It's not the greatest time to sell a house but we're hoping it'll go quickly so they can get settled in DC. My Dad is already spending the weekdays there and driving back home for the weekends. If you know anyone looking for a great house close to New York City, let me know! :)
Raking and blowing leaves in the yard.


Jumping in the piles.

Stomping down the leaves.


Blake loves to give kisses... he says "mwah!" even if he just hears the word and loves to give hugs and kisses before bed while saying "nigh-nigh, nigh-nigh!"
Not sure what was going on with the no shirts in this picture...Cooking with Grandma
The cats are finally getting braver and will actually come out of hiding when the kids are around. I guess they realize that we're here to stay. :)



We ordered Chinese after a long day of work one day.


Taking a bath in Grandma's tub.

I think there was a little too much water but they loved swimming around in it. :)



MOPS PLAYDATE:

My mom is the Mentor Mom for her MOPS group and hosted a playdate at her house one morning. Natalie and Blake loved having all the kids to play with but didn't like having to share their Grandma (see them both on the couch next to her!)

Cute baby Asher. Natalie is getting really excited about our new baby and notices babies everywhere.

A few minutes after this picture, one of them opened the front door and they all ran out in the pouring rain. None of us moms even knew about it until one of them came back in all wet! Aye yay yay! Later that night when we were talking about it, Natalie said, "Remember when that girl went out and got "soaped and wet?" (soaking wet).

Weekend at the Yoders:
I drove to the Yoders on Friday so we could spend time with Chris (Brian's brother) and Michelle and their kids, Allie and Adam. Chris just got back from Iraq last month. Grandma and Grandpa and Bethany watched all four kids for us on Saturday so we could go to the Penn State game together. Thanks so much! It was a very wet and rainy day but we had a great time.

Michelle took lots of pictures and I'll post some more later.

We brought Brian back with us for the rest of the weekend. The kids hadn't seen him a week so they (and I) were happy about that!

Coloring Cousins Spinning each other in the chair.

Blake and Adam... smile boys!

We headed home Sunday night... both kids fell asleep on the way... It's been a fun week but they were ready to get back home!


The First Snow:
We got tons of snow this week and the kids were so excited about it. Big change from Hawaii weather!! They did see it last Christmas but I'm not sure they really remembered it. It's snowing again today and we are enjoying the beautiful white blanket outside. While we loved Hawaii, we are definitely enjoying the seasons!



Chris and Michelle's Visit:

They came over to our house this weekend so we could spend some more time together. We had a great time watching the last Penn State game (can't wait for the Rose Bowl!), eating pizza and lots of Buckeye Balls and the kids totally enjoyed each other.
Uncle Chris tickling Natalie

Thanks for coming up guys... it was so fun! Maybe you'll be closer to us soon...? :)
Daddy and Natalie
The girls playing with letter puzzles before bed.
All four kids before church. So cute!
Family photo shoots after church...
Cute Cousins!
Happy Thanksgiving! We are grateful for you! :)